Teleconferencing is an effective and cost-efficient means of providing the staff of the school district access to consultants and inservice programs. Teleconferencing differs from televised programs in that it is interactive, allowing participants in a conference or program to be in different places, yet still communicate. Experience at the San…

A comprehensive school management system plan that includes parent participation and staff development is described. The staff development program is influenced by parents' input through surveys and through their direct involvement on site councils. (JMF)

Findings from California's Statewide Longitudinal Study (SLS) of community college students are reviewed in terms of their implications for student personnel services. Following a background discussion of counselor functions and training and an overview of current concerns in counseling, guidance, and student placement, the paper examines the…

This article provides an overview of federal initiatives to stimulate teacher training from the 1960s through the Reagan administration years. A brief discussion of California teacher education initiatives is also included. Federal initiatives are characterized as reactive and disjointed. (IAH)

This report presents a series of policy recommendations from the members of the California Technology Project Distance Learning Task Force to the California State Department of Education and the State Legislature on future directions for distance learning for kindergarten through twelfth grade schools. These recommendations are intended to assist…

Responds to an article on 10 dichotomies in teacher education (SP 527 128), emphasizing that public school teaching must become a stronger profession, with teachers having extended and rigorous preparation and meaningful opportunities for continued professional development (as well as proper remuneration and the respect of the public). The…

Reports the essential findings of one phase of the assessment studies conducted during the California New Teacher Project, suggesting some implications from that study for the impending reform efforts. The paper concludes that California lacks a coherent, rigorous system of assessments guided by a clearly defined set of performance expectations.…

Sets the context for examining a series of articles that highlight California's work on beginning teacher induction, discussing restructuring to connect teaching and learning, knowledge of student learning, teacher performance expectations, standards of practice, the role of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, implications for…

The importance of cooperation between colleges and schools to insure that students have adequate preparation for college-level work is considered by the assistant vice-president of the University of California System. It is claimed that higher college admission standards would screen out underprepared students but would not solve the problem of…

The report of a California task force examines new or revised special education service delivery models which would allow for maximum interaction between special education and general education. After a review of the literature and a 2-day policy forum, the task force concluded that there is no one model appropriate for all schools and all…

This paper explains how educational technology and multimedia materials can enhance teaching and learning for today's diverse students. The United States still carries the Puritan influence in education (attempting to build a single culture), with little recognition of the need to address diversity in California's K-12 classrooms. Recently,…